Needle threader



Dec. 30, 1952 2,623,668

M. FISHER NEEDLE THREADER Filed Oct. 13, 1949 J/Aez/m/ flak/2 INVENTOR, 23V

P 4 Ty? Patented Dec. 30, 1952 NEEDLE THREADER Marvin Fisher, Hollywood, Calif., assignor to Threadrite Corporation, Hollywood, Calif., a corporation of California Application October 13, 1949, Serial No. 121,080

1 Claim.

This invention relates to device for threadin needles and the principal object of the invention is to provide a needle threading devicewhich'may be readily used by any person and which addi-' tionally is so constructed and arranged that it may be used by a person having little or no eyesight to thread a needle quickly and surely.

Another object of the invention is to provide a needle threading device of the type employing a hook to enter the eye of a needle, and to draw a thread through the needle-eye upon retraction in which the hook is at all times confined between guiding means disposed closely adjacent to the needle-eye.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a needle threading device of the above char acter which is simple in construction and economical to manufacture, and which is ofsuch sizeas to be readily recognized by touch and of such shape that a sightless person can readily grasp it and position it for use.

With the above objects in view, together with such other objects and advantages as may subsequently appear, the invention resides in the parts, and in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter described and illustrated, by way of example in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings forming a part of said specification and in which:

Fig. 1 is a top plan view of a needle threaderembodying the present invention,

Fig. 2 is an end elevation of the needle threader Fig. 4 is a similar view of the other body member,

Fig. 5 is an elevation of the hook and its operating means, the view being taken from the right hand side of the hook and its operating means shown in Fig. 1, and

Figs. 6 to 12, both inclusive, are transverse sectional views of the assembled threading device taken on the lines B6, 1'I, 8--8, 9-9, Ill-40, H- -l!, and l2--l2 of Fig. 3.

Referring to the illustrated embodiment of the invention, the body of the device comprises a pair of body members I and 2 of identical side outline but having their mating faces oppositely arranged so that they combine to form, first a guide means for the threading hook and its operating means, second, the needle positioning means, and third, a thread escape means. Each of the body members on its inner or meeting face is provided with a transverse groove, which grooves combine as shown in Fig. 1 to form a needle receiving socket means 3. The member I adjacent the socket 3 is cut away below the plane of the mating faces of the body members to combine with a corresponding face on the a square guideway for the square portion 6 of a Adjacent the end of the body members opposite the end having the hook-carrying plunger 1.

needle socket the guideway 5 terminates in a short circular portion 5a which engages'the cir-. cular portion of the plunger 1. At its opposite end, the plunger member 1 is formed with a circular portion 8 of lesser diameter than the square portion 6, upon which is mounted a compression spring 9 which is housed within a portion of the square guideway formed by the grooves 5, 5 and which spring reacts between junctures of the portions 8 and 6 of the plunger at one end and by the shoulder formed by the juncture of the guideways 5, 5 with grooves II,

II, forming a guideway for the portion 8 of the plunger. At its extreme end, the plunger carries a hook ll formed of extremely thin sheet metal and when the device is at'rest, the spring 012 crates to retract theplunger until the hook is clear of the needlesocket 3. The grooves II, II terminate just short of the needle socket 3 and is separated from the needle socket by walls l2, l2 which extend across the ends of the grooves H, H, closely adjacent the needle socket. These walls in the region of the path of movement ofthe hook I0 are cut away slightly as at [2, I2 to form a guiding aperture for the hook I!) which is just wide enough to receive thehook andv which is centrally disposed with respect to the plane of the meeting faces of the body members i and 2. It is particularly to be noted that when the plunger is completely retracted by the action body member 2 is likewise provided with similar dowel pins [4, M; the latter engaging sockets l5, 15 formed in the member l while the dowel pins l3, l3 engage corresponding sockets Hi, l5

in the member 2 upon assembly of the body membersi The use of the device is believed to be obvious. needle is inserted in the socket 3 eye end foremost and seated in the notch 11 at the inner end thereof with the eye turned so as to be disposed for entrance by the hook ID. The plunger 1 is then pressed inwardly against the force exerted by the spring 9 with the hook passing through the eye of the needle and extending into the thread guiding notch 18. A thread is then laid over the hook and the spring 9 is then allowed to retract the hook, pulling the thread with it through the.

The device is held in one hand and the intended to embrace all such modifications in the parts, and in the construction, combination and arrangement of parts as shall come within the purview of the appended claim.

I claim: 1

A needle threading device comprising a body having a thread positioning notch extending transversely to said body at one end thereof said body being formed from complementary, oppositely identical parts assembled in side by side f relation; the meeting faces of said parts having needle-eye, after which the. needle can be lifted out of the socket with the thread. extending from.

the supply to the needle passing upwardly through the slot 4. If the thread should hang slightly on the hook In, it is necessary then only to move the hook a slight amount forward so that the bight of thread on the hook can be.

released therefrom.

Preferably all of the. parts are plastic moldings, except the spring, and the hook, and hence are capable of economical production. In assembly, the plunger and hook assembly. including the spring, are placed in one of the body halves, a.

slight amount, of suitable cement or adhesive is applied to themating surfaces of at least one of the body members, the other body member is pressed onto the first body member and as soon: as the cement has. dried, the device is ready for use- Since the hook must be thin enough to pass through the eyes of the needles, it must of necessity be very thin. Additionally, because of its small cross section, it is most desirable that the hook bemade ofspring metal and spring metal in hardening, especially on. very tiny parts, is apt to Warp slightly. A great deal of diiiiculty has been experienced heretofore in accurately guiding a. hook of this character to and through the needle-eye due to the liability of the thin metal parts to warp during the tempering process. The present invention solves this trouble ,by maintaining the hook in constant, contact with its guiding means. For this reason, even bent or V improperly assembled hooks can be employed,

since upon assembly and misalignment of. the book will be immediately corrected by the guides,

and the hook. will thereafter operate in the plane determined by the. guides. Since these guides are located adjacent the needle socket means, the book. will be held in line during the only part of complementary recesses which combine to form a needle positioning socket adjacent to said notch and a plunger guideway extending at right angles to said guideway from a distal end adjacent to said socket to and through the opposite end of said body; a portion of said guideway intermediate the ends thereof being polygonal in cross section and the ends of said guideway being circular in cross section and of lesser diameter than the major diameter of said polygonal portion, and

a narrow, rectangular, hook guiding aperture extending between said distal end. of said guideway and said socket, a plunger slidably mounted in said guideway; said plunger having a distal end engaging the distal end of said guideway and having anopposite end protruding beyond the end of said body remote from said socket and having an intermediate portion of polygonal cross section slidably-and non-rotatably engag ing the polygonal portion of said guideway, a

compression spring mounted on said distal end portion of said plunger and housed within said polygonal portion of said guideway efiective to urge said plunger away from said socket; and a thin, resilient hook element carried by and extending beyond said distal end of said plunger tio'nal configuration of said aperture to afi'ord its travel. when it is important that the hook be in line, viz, the forward or entering movement of .3,

the. hook into a needle-eye. Thus, production costs are reduced in that the permissible tolerance in the alignment of the hook withv its body member is no longer a critical factor, and as" a matter of. fact, due to this novel means of main- :1:

taining the hook. in a predetermined line of travel, a much thinner metal may be employed for the hook. It is also to be noted that due to the lateral offsetting of the thread escape slot, the needle receiving socket 3 is provided with a wall. portion against which the needle may rest during the entry of the threading hook into the needle eye during, a threading operation.

While, in the foregoing specification and drawings, I. have described one embodiment of my invention,such description is by Way of example only; I do not intend to limit myself to the exact form thus disclosed and the invention is free'but closely guided movement of said. hook through said aperture and through the eye of a needle positioned in said socket.

MARVIN FISHER.

REFERENCES? CITED The following references are of record in the file. of. this. patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,162,938 Leon Dec. 7, 1915 2,195,571 Janch Apr. 2, 1940 2,281,180 Christ Apr. 28, 1942 2,483,595 Olson Oct. '4', 1949 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date I 3,450 Great Britain 1909 114,158 Sweden June 5, 1945 159,452 Great Britain 1921 

